All Good Things
by Ceillean
Summary: [AU OC & Kyp Durron] An old friend pays Kyp Durron a visit. Flashbacks to earlier life after Jedi Academy.
1. Prologue

It was a cool Coruscanti evening as Elizabeth Thompson made her way through the maze that was Galactic City.

She stopped to gaze at the setting sun, its beautiful colors of oranges and reds cascading down the tall, gleaming buildings like fiery waterfalls.

The sight was utterly beautiful.

The young woman stood there another moment, watching as other pedestrians – humans as well as non-humans – passed her by, going about their business.

Her gaze shifted towards ships of all shapes and sizes in ordered lanes high up above her head and again found herself gawking at the technicality of this world.

She would never get used to this place.

With an inward sigh, she turned away from the setting sun and headed up yet another flight of stairs.

Slowly she walked through a vast corridor that was linked to a large market place. Before even getting there, her breath caught in her throat as she took in her surroundings.

Tapestries of worlds unknown to her hung from the high walls, each in intervals between immensely large windows. Three separate pedestals of a marble material stood at one end of the corridor, each carrying small statuettes of military personnel long deceased.

Elizabeth supposed this was a memorial of sorts and refrained from touching anything that was breakable.

She knew she could be a klutz when it came to valuable artifacts so she swiftly moved on towards loud commotion emanating from ahead.

And there she again shifted her attention towards the sky, finally making out her destination.

From down here the Jedi temple looked amazingly imposing, an elegant landmark composed of five separate towers. She had so far only seen pictures and holo-vids of the temple but standing beneath it, made a shiver run down her spine.

So many Jedi had trained here, so many had died here. And now here resided the new generation of Jedi, who had sworn to protect life and peace.

As a child she had always envisioned herself being a Jedi Knight of old, fighting alongside one of the Jedi Masters of the Republic. She would lie in bed and gaze out to the night sky, hoping that someday someone would come rescue you her from her boring school life and whisk her away to an adventure she would never forget.

But of course, no one had come and once she had hit puberty the dreams had faded as well.

She strolled down a sidewalk in between various alien and human booths, taking in new aromas and smells of foods and drinks she didn't even know existed.

A little farther down the street she could make out a small bald headed man trying to sell broken up speeder parts to two Bith he was conversing with but they turned their backs on him, leaving the man with an odd expression on his thick face.

At least market places were the same anywhere one went.

She stopped at an intersection and gazed up towards a sign hefted on a small building and turned to the left, hoping she would soon find the entrance to the temple.

Her feet were starting to hurt since she had been walking for the better part of two hours. But it had definitely been worth it.

Although Coruscant was the most crowded and hectic place she had ever set foot on, it was an adventure she wouldn't have wanted to miss out on.

It took her another few minutes of climbing stairs before she caught sight of two large pillars that finally represented her destination.

Hurrying a little and hoping she wouldn't run into any problems, she walked through a large open area that took her breath away. It was a huge hallway, bathed in golden colors, the walls and many other pillars reflected the light from outside.

"A total waste of space." She murmured under her breath and hurried down the hall.

Even though, she had to admit, it was beautiful.

After another few steps she walked through a low door to end up in a sort of anteroom.

A receptionist desk stood at the far side but otherwise the room was empty.

She walked up to one of the many windows and gazed to the streets below. The sight was breathtaking from up here and she wondered what it would be like to be standing in the High Council Chamber.

Elizabeth was just about to turn around to look for another entrance way when she heard a shuffling sound from behind her.

A young girl, maybe twenty years old, came strolling down the hallway, her gaze fixed on a data pad in her hands. She hadn't even noticed Elizabeth standing there.

And as she looked up, a startled expression on her face, she folded her hands behind her back, "May I help you?" she asked slowly.

"Uh…yeah. I'm looking for someone."

The girl smiled, "You've found someone." She said cheerfully, moving behind the receptionist desk and seating herself on a large, black leather chair.

_I'll get right to the point__ then…_

"I guess so." Elizabeth forced a smile, "Is Kyp Durron around?"

"You mean _Master_ Durron?"

She arched an eyebrow. This was a surprise.

"Huh. So they granted that stubborn show-off the rank of Master? He must be good."

The girl's eyes grew wide but she said nothing. Elizabeth supposed that it wasn't an everyday occurrence for someone to wander into the Jedi temple and start insulting one of their highly decorated Jedi Masters.

The girl was speechless to say the least and Elizabeth recognized dismay in her dark eyes, "Don't worry. He's an old friend. I just stopped by to say hello."

"I…" she swallowed, "I could call and see if he's available." She offered and Elizabeth nodded her approval.

"You do that. I'll just wait." She said sweetly hoping to extinguish a little bit of the girl's nervousness.

The girl opened a comm channel to wherever the Jedi were hiding in their precious little temple and after only a few seconds Elizabeth heard another speaker from the other end.

"Good Morning, Master Skywalker. I have a visitor for Master Durron. Is he in?"

There was a short pause on the other end, "He's in the hangar bay."

"Thank you, Sir."

The girl signed off and lifted her head towards Elizabeth.

"If you'd like, I could comm him?"

Elizabeth smiled, "That won't be necessary. I'll just go surprise him. Which way?"

The girl stood, "I'll show you. Follow me, please."

Elizabeth had the feeling the entire Jedi temple was built on the concept of pillars and large hallways. If it was supposed give visitors the feeling of pompousness she didn't know but it was having the effect of "better-than-thou" on her.

The place was a wonder in itself but too much was just too much.

They exited the hall she had come through but turned right towards another pair of huge doors with intricate symbols engraved into the material.

"This is the hangar bay." The girl said, "I'll let you go on without me."

"Thank you." Elizabeth said with a smile, "You've been a great help."

She shrugged, "I do the best I can." And with that she turned on her heel and left Elizabeth alone in the vast cavern of a hallway.

She took a deep, steadying breath and let many scenarios play across her mind's eye at how this meeting would play out.

There were only two options; either he was happy to see her or not.

"Let's get this over with." She whispered and walked through towards the hangar bay.

Which was, of course, enormous.

Only a few X-Wings stood lined against the wall to her left and at the far end she recognized a pair of new speeder bikes.

Otherwise the place was empty.

It smelled of oils and mechanical solutions and it gave her a feeling of home. As a child she had always been around broken up vehicles due to her father owning a shop in her home city. When she was old enough she had helped him the best she could but had disappointed the old man when deciding to go to the university instead of taking over the shop.

Slowly she made her way down the aisle of X-Wings, listening to faint sounds coming from the very end.

And she stopped in her tracks as she watched a man, his back turned towards her, working on one of the X-Wings. She had absolutely no idea about the newest models, or any model for that matter, but she found the small craft to be very formidable.

Elizabeth tried hiding a grin as Kyp turned around, his eyes growing a little wider as he recognized his visitor.

Without a word he dropped the small hydrospanner on a tool belt lying on the floor and with his arm, wiped sweat from his brow.

_Oh, dammit…_ Elizabeth thought, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

The man looked good. Too good.

His hair was longer than last she remembered and bound together in a rather short ponytail in the nape of his neck. A few dark stray strands hung into his handsome face.

And he smiled that wicked grin she had tried so hard to forget.

"Hey there handsome." She said, hoping her smile didn't seem too forced.

"Liz Thompson." He said, leaning against the small fighter craft, "Now to what do I owe this unexpected visit?"

Elizabeth shook her head slightly, "I don't even get a hello?"

He laughed and walked towards her, suddenly grabbing her hips and pulling her into a friendly, yet tight hug. "Of course you do."

"How you've been?" she asked after letting him go.

The older man shrugged and put on another roguish grin, "The usual, I guess. But good. How about you?"

"Can't complain."

Which was a downright lie but she wouldn't start up a conversation they had already been through so many times, so many years ago.

"What brings you to Coruscant?" Kyp asked while moving back towards his vehicle and picking up his tools.

Elizabeth had been afraid of that question. Of course, she could have come up with some lame story about ominous business meetings but she was pretty sure Kyp wouldn't believe one word she said.

But then she didn't want to come over seeming too pathetic. The truth was simple; she had plainly missed the arrogant and sometimes annoying Kyp Durron. She had wanted to see him, to hear his voice, to be near him again.

She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of telling him this in so many words. It was an impossibility to know what it would to do his already over-the-top ego.

"A few reasons. Nothing important. And since I have a whole lot of time on my hands, I figured I'd come visit." She cleared her throat, "Since a certain young man didn't deem it necessary to drop me a line or two in…what? How long has it been? Six years?"

Kyp made a face, "I've been busy."

"Ah yes. Classified Jedi stuff. Doesn't matter. Mustn't dwell on the past."

He chuckled, "No. Mustn't dwell."

Throwing the tool belt into the cockpit of the X-Wing and remotely closing it down, Kyp rubbed his dirty hands on his trousers.

He looked like a typical grease-monkey and Elizabeth cracked yet another smile.

"I hope I wasn't interrupting anything?"  
"Nope, I was about done anyway." He hesitated for a moment, his green eyes wandering over to his friend, "You look good, you know. Better than when we said good-bye."

Elizabeth arched an eyebrow, "Let's not talk about that just yet." She said in a low voice.

"But you're feeling –"

"Kyp, I came here to spend some time with my friend and maybe catch up on the good old times. Not to talk about things no one can change. I feel great. Let's just leave it at that for now, alright?" she said softly but left no room for arguments.

He forced a smile, "Alright."

"How about we get something to eat, then? I'm halfway starved."

Kyp smiled, "And I know just the place."

**Seven years earlier**


	2. Chapter 1

The red alert sounded throughout the whole ship, crimson lights flashing on and off in intervals, as shards of people either hurried to their vehicles or else headed to the last remaining escape pods.

Elizabeth stood plastered against the wall while bundles of life forms passed her as fast as they could.

The evacuation was chaotic to say the least. Nothing had been organized and most evacuees seemed to not even care if they'd trample someone to death.

But who was she to judge? While the other passengers tried to get _off_ the ship, she was trying to get to the bridge.

She pushed by a group of young humans, two girls sobbing quietly as their big sister tried to comfort them while whispering encouraging words that they'd all be fine.

Deep down Elizabeth knew that was most likely a lie.

The attack had come suddenly and unprovoked, as far as she was able to tell. At least the commanding officers had said nothing over the intercom.

After three or four volleys of laser fire everything grew quiet until a shudder ran through the ship and she heard loud footsteps echoing through the corridors.

There was no doubt in her mind that they were dealing with pirates. What they wanted with a normal passenger ship, she didn't know and didn't care.

All she wanted at that moment was to somehow reach the bridge and hope that nothing had happened to her brother.

She made it to the next turbo lift, crossing her fingers that it still worked. Stepping onto the platform and pushing the button to go up, she exhaled the breath she hadn't realized she had been holding and tried to relax her tired muscles.

She had a bad feeling that his day would end in a disaster.

Elizabeth wrinkled her forehead as the turbo lift stopped one deck below the bridge.

"This can't be good." She whispered while again pushing down on the button for the lift to ascend. But as her gut feeling had already confirmed, nothing happened.

Could this mean the bridge was destroyed? Or that the enemy, whoever this enemy was, was in control of the ship?

She had tried to comm the bridge several times now but to no avail. Her curiosity grew and she decided to check if she could use one of the maintenance tubes to get to the bridge.

"Which is a stupid idea…" she whispered to herself.

She had no scanning devices with her and suppose the bridge had been destroyed, she would most likely be risking her life.

A nagging feeling at the back of head kept telling her to give it up, that her younger sibling had not survived…

But she needed to be sure.

Trying not to let her frustration get the best of her, she took a deep and steadying breath while hurrying down the darkened corridor.

The red alert was starting to annoy her.

She passed the empty mess hall, crew quarters, the empty infirmary… everything seemed lost and infinitely so.

She stopped to catch her breath and silently cursed.

This was useless! Had Scott survived, he'd be on one of the pods by now.

_No, he wouldn't. And you know it._

She tried holding back the panic that was about to overwhelm her and tears threatened to sting her eyes.

No, Scott would fight to the death that much Elizabeth knew. He had always been like that, the little hero inside of him coming to the surface in dangerous situations.

But he wasn't supposed to die like this. Not like this.

_You don't even know if he'__s dead._

Elizabeth was about to go on when something suddenly felt off. There was a coldness running down her spine and she suddenly knew someone was behind her, following her.

She held her breath for a moment, straining to maybe hear footsteps but other than her steadily beating heart, there wasn't a sound.

Slowly she walked on, concentrating on finding a maintenance tube that led to the bridge and at the same time trying to pinpoint if she lay correct in her assessment someone was behind her. Or in front? She wasn't sure, she just _felt_ it.

And as suddenly as she had though that thought, she felt a blaster nuzzle at the small of her back.

With an inward shriek she held up her hands and took another breath.

"Turn around." She heard a voice say and before the man blew a hole in her back, she did what he wanted of her.

"You pirates are annoying the hell out of me." She hissed while taking in the sight in front of her.

The guy was hardly any older than her, his dark hair hanging loosely around his face and dark eyes gazing back at her with a look in them as if he were ready to kill.

He wore a simple off white tunic over a pair of large blue trousers, a tool belt hanging around his narrow waist.

"I'm not a pirate."

Elizabeth arched an eyebrow, "Yeah, well, you could've fooled me."

He pointed the blaster in the opposite direction, "Move."

_Scott…_

"I need to get to the bridge." She demanded in a firm voice.

"They're dead. No need to risk your life. Now move." He held the blaster a little higher and knowing it was senseless arguing in the middle of the corridor, she walked passed him with a sickening feeling in her gut.

_He's right you know…_

_They're all dead…_

_Scott…_

She had known it all along. She just hadn't wanted to accept it.

Tears started to well up but she fought them back. There was no way in hell she would show this pirate how vulnerable she really was.

"How do you know they're dead?" she asked simply, hoping her voice did not give away her current state of mind.

"I just know. Trust me."

Elizabeth laughed bitterly, "Trust a pirate. That'll happen."

"I said, I'm not a pirate."

"Then why the hell do you have that blaster pointed at my back?"

"Just a precaution, that's all."

She kept moving, thoughts swirling around in her mind. Thoughts about her dead brother, his beautiful smile and the way his dark eyes lit up when he laughed. She would miss him more than anything and she was devastated by the fact that she hadn't been able to say good-bye.

Her only family had died during a pirate attack.

It was getting harder to hold back her tears and she knew, would this stranger not be with her, she would have cowered on the floor like a child and cried her eyes out.

But instead of sorrow, she felt anger and it seemed to emanate from her body, because the man holding the blaster suddenly stopped and narrowed his eyes.

"What?" she hissed.

Her anger was slowly but surely turning into fury but she tried to ignore the emotions gone wild. Being angry wouldn't solve any of her problems.

Scott was dead. There was nothing she could do about it. What she needed to do at that moment, was live and get off the ship.

"Go on." The man said, "We're heading to the hangar bay."

Again she stepped onto the turbo lift, the pirate-or-not right behind her. He hadn't dropped the weapon an inch and still had it pointed at her midsection.

It was slightly unnerving.

"How about you put that blaster away? I'm unarmed."

He arched an eyebrow, "Of course you are."

"Fine. How would _you_ feel if you had a weapon pointed at your back?"  
Elizabeth caught sight of a slight smile and frowned. Was he enjoying this?

"I'd listen to what the guy holding the blaster wanted and I'd do it. Wouldn't want to put my life on the line for nothing."

The turbo lift stopped on an overfilled corridor, still too many passengers wanting to get off the ship. Elizabeth heard cries and sobs filled with horror and a shiver ran down her spine. There was no way anyone could help these people. Whatever the pirates wanted with this ship, the people stuck here would find out first hand.

"What do you want here?" Elizabeth asked, her voice dripping with anger.

"I just want to get off the ship. As I've already said, I'm not a pirate. I don't belong to them and I don't know what they want."

"I don't believe you."

He shrugged, "That's not my problem."

"What do you want with _me_ then?" she asked as she tried moving passed the groups of people who had huddled together against the walls. It seemed that the escape pods were already full.

"That's not your concern right now. Shut up and move." He said and she felt the nuzzle of the blaster dig deeper into her flesh.

She had the feeling he wasn't playing games.

The hangar bay doors had been sealed from the inside, no doubt trying to keep the many people from entering in a panicked frenzy. But people in grave danger, already seeing their life flash before their eyes, tended to be very inventive.

A short stocky man had started ripping off the casing to the wall and was now making his way through various colourful wires and equipment. Another man was using a plasma burner to cut through the metal alloy and Elizabeth knew too well it was a futile gesture. He would definitely not make it in time.

"Now what?" she whispered towards the man still holding the blaster firmly to her back.

"Keep going."

She did what she was told and was surprised to see the men back away from the hangar bay doors.

With one gesture at the controls the doors irised opened with a grunt and the entire mob of people sprang to their feet and into the hangar bay. Elizabeth stared open mouthed.

"How'd you do that?" she asked awed. She had heard of people being able to manipulate minds and matter but that would mean that this guy was a sort of Jedi. But Jedi didn't threaten someone's life. Well, the good kind anyway.

"I'll tell you later." He said while putting the blaster back in its holster. He took hold of her hand and hurried down the hangar bay towards a small black ship that desperately looked like it needed repairs.

It had enough room for two or three passengers and as he slapped the controls to let down the ramp, Elizabeth had to hurry to get inside.

A group of people were following her. With too many aboard, the ship wouldn't even be able to lift off.

"Can't you help them?" she asked the man as she followed him towards the cockpit.

"How? There isn't enough room."

"Maybe just two or three—"

"Do you know what would happen if we'd let down the ramp? Do you honestly believe only two or three people would get aboard? This is a life and death situation for them. They're panicked!"

He turned away and paid no more attention to his guest who had plopped down on the co-pilots seat. After another minute or so the ship lifted off and Elizabeth shut her eyes. She didn't want her last memory of the ship to be of flailing arms and crying children held by their equally crying mothers.

Somehow she just couldn't shake the feeling that they had to do something. This wasn't right. They couldn't just let innocent people die like this.

But what could she change? She was just one person being kidnapped or rescued by a stranger who kept repeating not to be a pirate. A stranger with Jedi powers…

After another minute or so the stars outside in cold space dissipated to be replaced by the blues of hyperspace. It was a beautiful and comforting sight, a relaxing sight and Elizabeth leaned back in the soft leather chair, finally letting all emotions surface.

Except, she wouldn't cry. If the guy really was a Jedi, he'd already know what was bothering her, eating her up inside.

"If you aren't a pirate, what are you then? I saw what you did down there."

The dark haired man leaned back in the pilot's seat and turned towards her, his dark gaze holding her. "I'm a Jedi Knight. But I think you've already figured that out on your own."

She shrugged, "I suppose. Do you have a name?"

He hesitated a moment as if pondering to answer her question or not, "My name's Kyp. Kyp Durron."

Elizabeth blinked twice before sighing loudly and closing her eyes.

As she had expected, the day had ended in a disaster.


End file.
